VOA标准英语2011--Multi-Site Megachurches Multiply in America

Multi-Site Megachurches Multiply in America

Many young Evangelical Protestant Christians¹ shun² the expansive form of worship that drew their parents to so-called megachurches and opt³ instead for a more intimate religious experience. But one congregation may have found a way to have both size and intimacy⁴.

The way to church leads through turnstiles, into a ballpark.

It comes with a friendly greeting ... a concert ... and crowd-revving antics.

All a warm-up to the main act - Pastor⁵ J.D. Greear. "Here Jesus says this question is of the utmost importance, one that literally⁶ your entire eternity⁷ hangs upon!" he said.

Thousands of people came for this Church in the Ballpark event. But it is far from what this congregation looks like most of the time.

“The Summit Church is not a traditional megachurch. The main service is normally held in this chapel⁸. And the pastor's sermon is simulcast from this stage behind me."

It goes out to satellite campuses that serve many neighborhoods.

Greear says it started when his congregation outgrew⁹ the school it used for services. "So we said why don't we see about putting congregations - rather than multiplying services or building one big, huge, multimillion dollar building - what if we multiplied congregations in the place where we are and took use of technology, and kind of had the best of both worlds - the best of a smaller congregation and the best of a larger congregation," he stated.

The stadium event brought all the campuses together for one day, showing how successful the multi-site model has become.

Most of the estimated 3,000 multi-site churches in the United States were started in the past decade, as attendance at the so-called megachurches plateaued.

"People got a little burned on megachurches because it was an audience. One of the things we believe the New Testament¹⁰ teaches is that church is not supposed to be a consumer event where you come you get a religious pep talk, sing some cool songs, and go home," Greear explained.

The music is part of the appeal. So are the mass baptisms.

But the different campuses have their own staffs who provide the personal pastoral care that might be missing at a megachurch.

Scott Thumma is an expert on congregations at the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, and sees multi-site churches having some advantages over megachurches. "It allows them to still be a big church, to have a large budget, to have a major mega-presence," he said. "But it also allows them to get their people involved and to be in smaller venues¹¹ as well."

And it allows them to be led by a celebrity-like pastor.

"Yeah, there's a little rock star status," Greear acknowledges. "I think that some of that is just the nature of the game. And it's definitely one of the things we're trying to discourage."

This rock star does get his feet wet - when his own daughter takes the plunge¹² of faith.

1 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

2 shun   

vt.避开，回避，避免

参考例句：

• Materialists face truth,whereas idealists shun it.唯物主义者面向真理，唯心主义者则逃避真理。
• This extremist organization has shunned conventional politics.这个极端主义组织有意避开了传统政治。

3 opt   

vi.选择，决定做某事

参考例句：

• They opt for more holiday instead of more pay.他们选择了延长假期而不是增加工资。
• Will individual schools be given the right to opt out of the local school authority?各个学校可能有权选择退出地方教育局吗？

4 intimacy   

n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行

参考例句：

• His claims to an intimacy with the President are somewhat exaggerated.他声称自己与总统关系密切，这有点言过其实。
• I wish there were a rule book for intimacy.我希望能有个关于亲密的规则。

5 pastor   

n.牧师，牧人

参考例句：

• He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
• We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师：教会的事是由五位执事管理的。

6 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

7 eternity   

n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷

参考例句：

• The dull play seemed to last an eternity.这场乏味的剧似乎演个没完没了。
• Finally,Ying Tai and Shan Bo could be together for all of eternity.英台和山伯终能双宿双飞，永世相随。

8 chapel   

n.小教堂，殡仪馆

参考例句：

• The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
• She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

9 outgrew   

长[发展] 得超过（某物）的范围( outgrow的过去式 )； 长[发展]得不能再要（某物）； 长得比…快； 生长速度超过

参考例句：

• She outgrew the company she worked for and found a better job somewhere else. 她进步很快，不再满足于她所在工作的公司，于是又在别处找到一份更好的工作。
• It'soon outgrew Carthage and became the largest city of the western world. 它很快取代了迦太基成为西方的第一大城市。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史

10 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。

11 venues   

n.聚集地点( venue的名词复数 )；会场；（尤指）体育比赛场所；犯罪地点

参考例句：

• The band will be playing at 20 different venues on their UK tour. 这个乐队在英国巡回演出期间将在20个不同的地点演出。
• Farmers market corner, 800 meters long, 60 meters wide livestock trading venues. 农牧市场东北角，有长800米，宽60米的牲畜交易场地。 来自互联网

12 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。